ATJ EPC Project

he execution of the ATJ System (Automated Turf System) began in May 2022, following the last UEFA Champions League match held at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The first activities included dismantling the existing pitch, with the immediate goal of having the new system ready for the first league match on September 3, 2022.

The ATJ system is composed of six mobile trays, each measuring 107 x 11.6 meters and weighing approximately 1,500 tons. These trays rest on an underground hypogeum located nearly 30 meters below the field surface. The technical infrastructure includes metallic structures and mechanical equipment totaling more than 5,000 tons. The system also integrates 22 redundant hydraulic mechanisms to ensure high-precision tray movement.

Additionally, the system comprises approximately 90 kilometers of electrical cabling and more than 5 kilometers of piping, distributed between the agronomic maintenance facilities and fire protection systems. For its development and documentation, over 12,500 technical documents were produced—nearly 11,500 of which were drawings.

This large-scale project involved:

• 40 engineering, consulting, and surveying firms

• 16 logistics companies

• 66 industrial supply and raw material providers

• 40 manufacturing companies

• 30 assembly contractors

Execution required over 350,000 direct assembly hours and the use of more than 1,250 trucks for material transportation, including those used to remove the pitch at the end of the 2021/22 season.

In November 2023, the ATJ system achieved Provisional Acceptance, following CADE’s supervision and validation of its operational and maintenance performance. Real Madrid C.F. President Florentino Pérez highlighted this milestone as a major success during the club’s General Assembly.